Illegal Child Immigration: Citizenship Chance Deserved

With President Barack Obama pressing to reform immigration laws, and as a bipartisan group of senators strives to formulate legislation to do just that, they should keep Maria Quezada in mind.

With President Barack Obama pressing to reform immigration laws, and as a bipartisan group of senators strives to formulate legislation to do just that, they should keep Maria Quezada in mind.

She is 18 and lives — and works — in Bradenton. She was a top-notch student in Manatee County public schools, studying hard and staying out of trouble.

Unlike typical 18-year-olds who want to sleep late, she rises at 5 a.m. so she can arrive on time for work at a local surgical center.

Quezada is in many ways a model citizen.

However, she is not a citizen of the United States. Quezada was brought to the States from Mexico, when she was 10, by her undocumented parents.

As a result, she cannot legally obtain a driver's license and, despite early signs of acceptance, gaining entry to Florida's public universities has been problematic.

Despite risks — to herself and her family — Quezada applied to participate in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. The federal program, created by Obama last June through an executive order, defers deportation of young, undocumented immigrants who meet certain criteria; DACA also allows immigrants to work, legally and openly, for at least two years.

UNCERTAIN FUTURE

Quezada appears to meet several of the criteria, reports the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. She is between 15 and 30 years old, and has graduated from school, maintained continuous residence and avoided criminal charges.

Much of the risk in Quezada's application lies in the fact that continuation of the DACA program is not guaranteed.

What's more, the program does not grant permanent legal status.

Congress should fully implement the program — or, better yet, something more comprehensive. Fortunately, a small bipartisan group of senators — recently expanded to include Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Florida — is working to produce a principled compromise aimed at constructively reforming immigration laws.

The plight of Quezada should be considered by Congress because:

Her circumstances demonstrate how application fees, which many members of Congress and the executive branch would view as minimal, impose a substantial burden on immigrants and their families — including those working hard to make a living.

The uncertainty of the program's duration and the fear that coming out into the open could harm undocumented family members are deterrents. To that end, a comprehensive reform package should ensure that immigrants who applied under the DACA are "grandfathered" into the system for protection.

Applicants such as Quezada should then be able to join others — including illegal immigrants who have been productive members of society — on a path toward citizenship, with its benefits and obligations.

The young woman's decision, supported by her family, to apply to the program is a reminder that debates over immigration policies involve people — people with feelings and aspirations who, if allowed through a sensible process, could contribute even more to the United States.

NEED FOR SENSIBLE LAW

Neither President George W. Bush in his second term nor Obama in his first term were able to get Congress to pass a sensible law that recognized the need for: